How NJ students set up their at-home classrooms makes a difference (Opinion)

There have been so many arguments about what type of learning is really going to work for kids this year. And so many parents have said that remote learning just did not work out for them this past spring. Maybe there’s a way to make it work a little better. The bottom line is, a lot of us are going to have to accept that our kids will be at home again indefinitely.

So as long as we know this, at least we can make the best of a bad situation.The same way your mom always told you that a cluttered room makes for a cluttered mind, it’s important for kids to set up to create a space for optimal learning. An article on tapinto.net explains that your workspace can influence your child’s productivity during remote learning either negatively or positively.

For instance, carving out a certain space that is just for learning is important because blending personal and school matters together could cause anxiety, pressure, and mental health issues for kids, especially teenagers who are vulnerable to those issues anyway. It’s important for kids to be able to switch off and switch on and that separate learning space enables them to do so. Because distraction can also be difficult, it’s important to keep things calm and chaos free when kids are learning at home. Some experts even suggest noise canceling headphones so that your kids can really pay attention without being pulled away by distracting sounds and noises around their workspace.

Another thing to do to really help boost kids ability to learn at home is to make sure they get a lot of fresh air and natural light. Both have been proven to increase mental capacity. The article notes that isolation from peers is difficult enough without adding to the stress and anxiety. For this year’s schooling and its challenges to work best, it’s more important than you may think to have a clutter- free, organized and completely separate work environment for remote schooling.

The post above reflects the thoughts and observations of New Jersey 101.5 talk show host Judi Franco. Any opinions expressed are Judi's own.